Hearts

Craig Fowler gives his take after Hearts were able to defeat Aberdeen 2-1 at Tynecastle.

Marks out of ten for every Hearts player following the 2-1 victory over Aberdeen in the Ladbrokes Premiership.

Hearts boss Craig Levein hailed a "brilliant" display from Steven Naismith as Hearts extended their lead at the top of the table with a 2-1 win over Aberdeen.

The collective confidence of the Hearts support took a significant hit earlier this week - though it wasn't a permanent one.

Hearts ended a testing week by holding on for a hardfought victory over Aberdeen to extend their advantage at the top of the Scottish Premiership to three points.

Hearts' recent injury woes have continued into Saturday with Peter Haring absent from the starting XI for the visit of Aberdeen.

Celtic’s loanee defender Filip Benkovic has said that Leicester City could recall him in January, Steven Gerrard has hit out at the Hall of Fame saga and Hibs boss Neil Lennon doesn’t believe they are title contenders. All this and more in today’s rumour mill.

Sean Clare has been tipped to emerge as a standout player in the Ladbrokes Premiership as he prepares for his first involvement with Hearts.

Steven Naismith believes Hearts are benefitting from Craig Levein’s knowledge of Scottish football allied to the manager’s ability to deliver “crystal clear” instructions to his players.

Hearts were dealt a severe blow with the news that John Souttar and Uche Ikpeazu will miss between five and six months of action. Joel Sked looks back at the serious injuries and misfortune the club has suffered in recent years.

Hearts host Aberdeen on Saturday without key duo Uche Ikpeazu and John Souttar, who are both sidelined for five to six months with a foot and hip injury respectively.

Following the news that star striker Uche Ikpeazu is ruled out for between five and six month, Hearts fans turned a collective eye towards the January transfer window.

Follow The Scotsman’s daily blog as we keep you updated with all the latest news, views, rumours and much more from around Scottish football.

Hearts have been rocked by a devastating double blow ahead of a crucial run of fixtures after key duo John Souttar and Uche Ikpeazu were ruled out until well into the new year.

Hearts supporters, eagerly awaiting their table-topping team’s return to action against Aberdeen at Tynecastle tomorrow were suddenly plunged into a collective state of shock and deflation when news filtered out via Craig Levein’s pre-match media briefing at Oriam yesterday morning that not one, but two of their main men had been ruled out until well into 2019.

Hearts manager Craig Levein says his players have proved themselves capable of handling most conundrums this term and believes that they will continue to do so despite the disappointing news that stand-in captain John Souttar and cult hero Uche Ikpeazu have joined club skipper Christophe Berra on the list of long-term injured.

Follow The Scotsman’s daily blog as we keep you updated with all the latest news, views, rumours and much more from around Scottish football.

Hearts have sold over 23,000 tickets for their Betfred Cup semi-final clash with Celtic.

The latest Scottish Premiership TV games have been announced, with two Hearts fixtures and one Hibs match scheduled to be shown live.